United Church of God - Doctrine

Doctrine

UCG follows and believes in most of the basic doctrinal principles shared by other Christian churches. However, some of its teachings differ from today's mainstream consensus in a number of key areas, including disagreements with Catholic and Protestant tenets. It identifies itself as Christian but denies some central teachings of historic Christianity, such as the Trinity and the supersession of Old Testament law such as keeping seventh-day Sabbath. These beliefs continue a doctrinal tradition of Armstrongism still preached by the churches that left WCG.

Doctrinal distinctions include:

• Belief in Biblical tithing, a compulsory donation of 10 percent of a member's income to the church to fund the organization's gospel mission. This has been called "pay and pray" by critics. Another 10 percent is set aside for the church's annual religious festivals.
• Belief in a non-Trinitarian view of God. Specifically, the belief that the Holy Spirit is the spirit/power of God and of Christ Jesus rather than a separate person in the Godhead. God 'the Father' and Jesus Christ are viewed as distinct 'God beings' in the 'God family'.
• Belief that Christians are begotten as children in the Family of God and will at their resurrection become "spirit-born divine beings who are part of Elohim, the universe-ruling family of God."
• Belief that the core of Jesus Christ's message was the coming of a literal earthly Kingdom and that people who are 'saved' will not go to heaven, but will live and rule eternally with Jesus Christ on earth after his second coming, and will subsequently share rulership over the entire universe as part of the 'God Family'. UCG also asserts that the final destination of the unrepentant wicked is not everlasting torture, but annihilation or permanent destruction.
• Belief in British Israelism, which is the teaching that people of Western European descent, primarily the original British colonies and the United States, are direct physical descendants of the Ten Lost Tribes of the northern kingdom of ancient Israel, whereas the historical Jews (and modern-day Israel) are descendants of the ancient southern kingdom of Judah.
• Belief that the basic Old Testament law is not "done away with" and is carried over into the "New Covenant" such that certain commandments apply to Christians today, including the Ten Commandments and teachings such as clean and unclean meats, literal observance of Holy Day festivals such as eating unleavened bread during the 'Days of Unleavened Bread', and living in 'temporary habitations' during the 'Feast of Tabernacles'. These beliefs exclude civil and sacrificial temple laws, but includes the literal observance of seventh-day Sabbath and the holy days of the Old Testament Jewish calendar, dietary restrictions,, and the condemnation of homosexuality.
• Belief that today's mainstream Christian teachings resulted from doctrinal corruption under the influence of Greco-Roman philosophy which occurred early in the history of the church, so that the major Christian churches now teach various pagan ideas and practices under the guise of Christianity. UCG preaches the ancient pagan origins of traditional Christian celebrations (especially Christmas and Easter) render them inappropriate for true Christians. Members believe that the doctrines and practices of the United Church of God can be traced to the original teachings of Jesus Christ and the early 'Church of God' as described in the New Testament.
• Belief that people who do not know or understand the truth of the Bible during their lifetimes will be given time to learn these teachings after the 'second resurrection' to a new physical life. After living again in the Millennial world under God's Kingdom, those who continue to reject God's Holy Spirit and way of life will be annihilated after the "Third Resurrection" along with unrepentant former believers who had turned away from God. They are destroyed in the third resurrection (the "resurrection of fire") in the Lake of Fire, along with Satan and his demons.